Because you all know a Christmas card letter from me would be way too long to fit on one page...

(*I mean really, just look at the title of this post for example!)

If you are coming here because you got a business card in a Christmas card from me: Welcome! Here is a "little" about what's been going on with us this year.

First off we are surgery free in 2011! (For those of you unaware of what a feat this really is for us: 4 people, 8 surgeries in the three and a half years between May 2007 and November 2010. Um, yeah, three of those were c-sections. Which brings me to...)

This is the first complete year since 2005 that I have not been pregnant for part of it. No new babies in this years Christmas picture after one each of the last two years. Though this year we are glad that "baby girl" has more hair and can actually smile. It made for a much cuter pictures than the ones of her sleeping or giving stoic looks.

(For privacy sake on this blog the girl whose name begins with J (but for some reason her brothers have been calling her "B"), is referred to as baby girl (14 months), big D is usually referred to as the eldest(4 1/2), and "Baby J" is usually just "the two year old", though I will need to change that soon (2 3/4). Can you believe he is almost three? If you know me but don't even know their actual names contact me with the info on the card and keep better updated.)

Now that your aware who everyone is...

I began to try homeschooling the eldest with a Catholic preschool program called Little Saints...which I realized he is too smart for. We have been doing all the books but not a lot of the crafts and learning games. As far as sticking to lessons plans go we are complete failures, but we have been working on more important things like respect . The other things will come. On a between Christmas and New Years vacation to grandma and grandpa's (weather permitting of course) I plan to look at the rest of the preschool year and other materials I have and make a plan for moving us more toward kindergarten material. (If I get time to now that I have told you all we are coming that way because I know you will all want to get your hands on these adorable kids.)

The two year old not quite three year old likes to join in with us for the story and finger play time and does about three seconds worth of an art project. He will definitely be our kinestetic learner. That's right, the little heart baby is the most active of them all, and has been since the womb. It is just his personality, but it is a really fun one to be around. He is such a joy so thanks for all your past prayers for him.

As far as his preschool year, he has at least finally admitted to knowing the names of colors. For awhile I was beginning to think he was also color blind.

(Speaking of blind, we had many instances of broken glasses early in the year, but then he lost them for three weeks over the summer and realized they actually did something so now he leaves them alone. Murphy's law, now that we actually have a back up pair he will probably never break them again!)

So I don't think the pre school program is a complete waste and I will probably be able to use it with the other two when they are almost three and four and a half.

For what homeschoolers refer to as "The s word" (socialization) I am trying hard to find things for the eldest to participate in, but there isn't a lot yet for his age group. (Other than running around with kids at moms group.) I can't really take him to the homeschool group I have been invited to yet because it is in the middle of nap time. (He started taking naps again! Blog time, though it should probably be cleaning time...) He did go to two different Bible schools. The very first day being away from mom like that, he said he didn't like how "you lose me".

I also was told he can come to the homeschool swim hour once he turns five even though it is still this school year....which made me realize he would need to learn how to swim! So he started swim lessons in September. He finally just started swimming himself a little this past weekend.

After the first day, the other boy said "I want to go to swimming class" so I signed him up for parent tot I. He loved it! He is now in Parent tot II...and hates it! He does not like that he gets "dunked" more. He will probably be screaming in my ear in a few hours during today's lesson. We have two more and then I think I will give him a break till he is old enough to enjoy it.

Baby girl is growing by leaps and bounds, though you may not notice it. She is still petite physically. (I guess she not only is my mini me in looks, but in size as well.) Mentally she is almost ready to walk and talk but has not yet mastered either. She is very close. She has been practicing letting go and knows how to call daddy and tell off her brothers when they get close to her food tray. I know she knows what we are talking about and how to do certain things she has learned from the brothers. Just last night she figured out how to shake the car that makes lots of noise when you do so. Oh joy. (Mental note to self-glad Uncle Matt said this years Christmas gift does not make noise! He is kind of known for those. Oh, and dad, John said the other grandma already got them a sled. Who needs Santa, really, when you have grandparent's and uncle, a godmother, and about a billion other people who want to spoil them!)

As far as John goes, he has just been busy multi tasking at the church, so much so that for a month he was even playing the role of secretary. Ours had a stroke and he had to figure out how she actually did her job and do things, like pay the bills before the lights went off during the middle of Mass. He is also helping me around the house a lot, probably more than he should be. I need to get my act together-more about that in moment. All of this means that parts of my house, specifically the downstairs where we don't go, will look like my friend Lynnette's kitchen for a little while longer. My friend, who three years ago was ready to nominate me for America's most patient housewife, doesn't get how I can "put up with it". I guess it is because the part of the house we do use is bigger than my bedroom. (Another way I feel better about my house is to remember things like the fact that St. Bernadette's family of six lived in a former jail cell that was only the size of my bedroom and I feel much better.)

As for me, since John is busy doing all these other things, I fired him as my web designer from the blog that actually had pictures (if you want them more than once a year e-mail me and I will send you some) and started this blog, became somewhat of an internet addicted reading other peoples blogs, and am now backing off that and even writing on this one less. All because I went to a little blogging conference called Relevant. (Those of you who knew me in high school-can you believe I actually went into a room of 200+ female strangers and voluntarily talked to some of them? I know, part of me doesn't believe that either.)

That is where your business cards came from. I made them at home so I at least wouldn't feel like a complete geek not having any compared to some of the more pro bloggers there. The reasons I gave them to you were a) because I had a lot of them left over and b)I figured some of you would want to make contact with me more than once a year in a Christmas card. One thing I learned at Relevant is that I think I mistook quantity of friends for quality. But even though I send a lot of cards out you have all been important to me somehow and I would love to keep in contact with you if you want, especially if you are family.

As far as this blog goes, feel free to read as much or as little as you like. Shameless self promotion really wasn't my goal in giving them out, giving you my e-mail and phone number was. But if you are here feel free to leave a comment, I love feedback and community building. I promise I will comment back. Funny, I feel safe here hiding behind my screen with strangers but it was scary to think that people I actually know may be reading and getting to know the real me. It is tough to be vulnerable with those you know in real life. My cards sat done overnight and part of me wanted to rip them apart and take out all the business cards!

So that's what's going on with us, just the same old same old. It's in the little things that happen everyday, which reminds me....if I didn't get to write on your business card that you are free to call or e-mail me any time it is a) because you were at the beginning of the alphabet before I decided this was a good idea (if you at the end I apologize for my penmanship, ironically my second grade teacher who is the last one on my list had something to do with forming my penmanship!) or b) because it is kind of hard to concentrate around here sometimes with things like two year olds running around the table, four year olds in your lap helping with stamps, babies taking cards out of a bag and throwing them around the room, and husbands coming in to tell you the guy who inspected their car really didn't do his job. And I stayed up "late" (11pm) to finish them. (If you knew me in college-do your Saturday nights look this different now?)

P.S. With all of that going on I am horrible proof reader!I also type too fast for my own good and end up with words "liek" "tiem". So excuse any mistakes, I'd correct them all if I had time-or a professional editor... There is a reason my English/Journalism major roommate read all my college papers!